“A riddled restitution”—The Indian journey from the recognition of the third gender towards the Queer

Abstract

AbstractThe queer movement in India celebrated a landmark with the decriminalization of Section 377 of Indian Penal Code in 2018. Another milestone was reached through the legal recognition of the transgender population of the Indian state in 2019. These developments point towards a positive progression of the queer movement in India. The change in the perspective of the state towards the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex (LGBTQI) shows a positive stance towards the concerns of the LGBTQI groups. However, the trajectory taken by the Indian state with respect to the concern of the queer community is riddled with a few challenges and roadblocks, which might create obstacles in furthering the concerns of the LGBTQI groups. The engagement with the heteronormative framework makes the sight of the state prismatic, which leads to lopsided and ineffective results. Thus, it is important to understand the specific nature of the concerns of the LGBTQI groups before embarking upon the task of restitution. This paper seeks to discuss the changing perspective of the Indian state towards the concerns of the LGBTQI and find the probable challenges that might be left unaddressed.